How to start a frozen food company

From snack foods, to frozen meals to desserts, frozen foods have become a part of our daily eating habits. And since they are so much a part of our daily diet there is money to be made in stocking the family freezer. Starting a frozen food company does present an extra set of challenges because that food must make it from the preparation stage through the distributor and to the store all while frozen. Here are some tips on how to start a frozen food company.

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Instructions

1

Determine what type of frozen food you want to sell. Any successful business must have a product that people want to buy. The advantage in the food industry is that people need to eat. Therefore they must buy some type of food. Develop a frozen food that combines great taste with a relatively low production cost. Ideas range from pizza, to low fat meals, ice cream treats and more.

(frozen fish image by lefebvre_jonathan from Fotolia.com)

2

Form a corporation. When going into business it is important that you form a corporation in that state where you'll operate the business. Forming a corporation will not only protect you as an individual by separating the business, but it will also allow you to take advantage of the tax code for business which differs from the tax code for individuals.

3

Get the associated state permits. In order to operate a food based business, many states require licenses. Check with the state government and determine what type of licenses you'll need and how to obtain them.

4

Create brand packaging for the frozen food company. Any company needs some form of branding so that people immediately identify a package with a certain company. Create brand packaging that is cheap to produce, environmentally friendly, will stand out on store shelves and that will hold the frozen food product well.

5

Meet with stores and get orders for the product. Before mass producing the product you want to obtain orders from stores and supply chains. Make small batches of the frozen food, set meetings with buyers, and get them to commit to an order in that meeting by trying the food. Make sure to cover things like the store cost, potential profit for the store and why you believe the product will sell.

6

Lease space in an industrial kitchen and packaging plant. With the initial batch of orders in place, lease a kitchen, hire staff and teach them how to mass produce, freeze and package the food. Make sure that they are producing the food in the same manner every time so that quality control is kept consistent.

7

Hire a cold supply chain company to distribute the food to stores. A cold supply chain refers to a company that specialises in getting refrigerated or frozen food from the warehouse to the store shelves for sales. Hiring a cold supply chain company in the area and get the food to the shelves.

8

Grow the frozen food business. Once the food business is up and running with the initial batch of orders, it is important to keep it growing. Advertise through coupons, Internet, radio, television, billboards and more. Also work to secure more stores that will sell your frozen food product.

Tips and warnings

Be sure to allow for waste when dealing with food costs. Any food based business will have some ingredient waste. Be sure to factor that in when purchasing food for the business.